Yesterday Was Easy

In this 36th episode, Pastor Luke discusses what it means to be a Quiet Professional. According to Grok: “A quiet professional is someone who demonstrates exceptional skill and dedication in their craft; lets their actions and results speak for themselves rather than seeking recognition, praise, or social media spotlight; places the mission, team, organization, or greater purpose ahead of personal ego, ambition, or accolades; embodies humility, discretion, reliability, and understated confidence; does the unglamorous, hard, or ‘dirty’ work without complaint or needing to be asked — never saying ‘that’s not my job.’” The satisfaction we get from living out our God ordained roles as Christian men, should come from honoring Christ by quietly and sacrificially loving our wives and children. Put a shirt on. Put away the duck lips. Delete the thirst traps. Quit complaining. Stop seeking attention. This is our mission, and we should do it well. We should do it to the glory of God, and we should do it without ever expecting even an ounce of recognition. Be a Quiet Professional. Yesterday was easy!

In this 34th episode, Pastor Luke discusses what it means to be a turd. In the SEAL Community, a “turd” is an operator who does not give a crap about his job, and forces everyone else to pick up the slack for him. There will always be men in the SEAL Teams that are great operators, but awful teammates. Nobody wants to work with these guys because they cannot be trusted. Many times, they will be shifted around from team to team until they are finally flushed out of the community all together. Putting to death turdness requires a holistic change. It demands a change in the inner man. It entails putting others before yourself. Have a good attitude. Be selfless. Don’t grumble and complain. Lead by example rather than waiting for someone else to lead. Bear good fruit. Give a crap. Don't be a turd. Yesterday was easy!

In this 32nd episode, Pastor Luke discusses a major no-no in the SEAL community: boat ducking. A major aspect of the SEAL training pipeline involves carrying or riding in a 13-foot rubber boat, known as an IBS, which stands for “Inflatable Boat, small.” Each boat is typically carried around by seven candidates of similar height, with the shortest group being labeled as the “Smurf Crew.” A boat ducker is someone who intentionally evades responsibility, by selfishly looking for the easy path, only considering self. In the SEAL community, which is built all around the concept of team, thinking only of self is the cardinal sin. Christ carried his burden perfectly and selflessly. He did not duck his boat. In order to pick up your cross and carry it, you must daily deny yourself. In other words, you must leave self at the foot of the cross. Every single day. No matter how difficult things get. Don’t be a boat ducker. Yesterday was easy!

In this 30th episode, Pastor Luke breaks down the song Fearless by one of his favorite bands, For Today. Most Christians, and even many non-Christians, eagerly overemphasize the love of Christ. As if that is all that he does. He only loves. Like some sort of effeminate hippy surfer dude handing out peace flowers at the beach on a warm sunny Southern California afternoon. But Scripture speaks differently. And clearly so. The rod had a different function. It was used to protect the harmless and gentle sheep from deadly predators, as well as to reprimand unruly sheep. It typically had a large nodule or knot on one end that acted as a painful club upside a carnivore’s noggin. It served as protection from outside danger as well as discipline for the uncooperative sheep within the flock. Here's the point: whom shall we fear? Instead of being fearful, we must be fearless. Who are you Satan to come against the God of the armies of Israel? He can’t stop Christ’s Kingdom; he has already been defeated. The Great Shepherd leads us through the Valley of the Shadow Death, in the presence of our enemies. His staff guides and directs us. His rod defends us. Be faithful, for the battle is the Lord’s. He will give our enemies into our hands. So let the devil come! Be Fearless. Yesterday was easy!

In this twenty eighth episode, Pastor Luke took the liberty to adapt a portion of the SEAL Code, or Ethos, to serve as the Trad Dad Ethos. A portion of it reads: “I serve with honor in and out of my home. The ability to control my emotions and my actions, regardless of circumstance, sets me apart from other men. Uncompromising integrity is my standard. My character and honor are steadfast.” Just like the SEAL Ethos, let this adapted Trad Dad Ethos serve as a North Star of guiding principles for Christian husbands and fathers. Let is stand as a succinct creed, epitomizing unwavering dedication and unyielding commitment. Let it function as the backbone of biblical masculinity, upholding honor and courage, that is rooted in scripture. Live the ethos. Yesterday was easy!

In this twenty-seventh episode, Pastor Luke finishes his mini-series of four shows dedicated to what he learned from attending the retirement ceremony of his dear friend Captain Brad Geary. This episode is all about legacy, and how we as Christian men should be thinking about how we can leave one, not just for our children, but also our children’s children, and their children’s children. Your legacy, whether good or bad, will leave a permanent imprint on future generations. If you plant a tree using good seed, it will produce good fruit. If you plant a tree using bad seed, it will produce bad fruit. Likewise, if you weave faithful thread into the lives of your progeny, they will produce faithful posterity. If you weave faithless thread into the lives of your descendants, they will produce faithless offspring. Weak leaders leave future generations a legacy of blight. Strong leaders leave future generations a legacy of blessing. Leave a legacy. Yesterday was easy!

In this twenty-fifth episode, Pastor Luke continues his mini-series of four shows dedicated to what he learned from attending the retirement ceremony of his dear friend Captain Brad Geary. On The Grinder at the BUD/S training center, there is a large brass bell hanging under a sign that reads, “Drop Area,” with a two-foot section of rope attached to it. When a candidate can no longer endure the rigors of this program, they are required to ring the bell three times. This signifies that they are quitting, and voluntarily removing themselves from the SEAL pipeline. When a SEAL candidate rings the bell, he leaves his helmet with his class number on it next to the bell. These helmets remain there lined up throughout the different phases as a constant reminder of the men that quit. Likewise, may the memory of those we have all known, who quit Christ, serve as a warning to bury that bell, far out of the reach of our hearts and minds For Christian men, fainting in the day of adversity is equivalent to ringing the bell. Demonstrating that your strength is indeed not small, but great, means eliminating thoughts of quitting altogether from your mind. Don't ring the bell. Yesterday was easy!

In this twenty-third episode, Pastor Luke wraps up his discussion of Voddie Baucham’s Four P’s of Family Shepherding, covering the Protector. A protector is a man who shields and defends the people God has placed under his care. He puts himself between his people and those who will harm them, whether it be physical, spiritual, or even from the culture and the technology it brings into your home. A protector is wise, not a fool. He is not someone who looks for nor invites trouble, but is also not someone who runs from it. The role of protector is one of position: you place yourself between the world and your loved ones. You act as a door, letting them out into the world as ambassadors for Christ to impact the culture for his glory, while at the same time, keeping the culture out, who would love nothing more than to devour your family. You are responsible to God for your loved ones. Guard them with your life. Be a protector. Yesterday was easy!

In this twenty first episode, Pastor Luke continues his discusses of Voddie Baucham’s Four P’s of Family Shepherding. This time he covers the Prophet. A prophet is a man who represents God before his people through proclamation of his word. A family shepherd is God’s representative to his household, and there is no neutral shepherding. You are either actively leading your family towards God through his Word, or actively leading them away from God, either directly toward some other false god, or allowing them to wander aimlessly through pure negligence. Brothers, if we are to speak for God to our families, we have to first know what God’s Word says. But we mustn’t stop there. We must also love and cherish it to the point it is continually on the tips of or tongues. We must then proclaim this truth to our households, and so with gentleness and respect, not lording it over those whom we love and are called to shepherd. Be a prophet. Yesterday was easy!

In this nineteenth episode, Pastor Luke pick up where he left off in the last episode to look at the biblical definition and purpose of the household. Household, or family government, is God’s second ordained sphere of government, extending larger than the individual sphere. This is even modeled in God’s created order for his people. You have Christ (the Groom) and the Church (his Bride), and then we, of course, as Christians, are his children and receive his inheritance. This is the whole story of history. HIS story! The Groom is pursuing his Bride until the great wedding day. At that moment, the Bride will become glorified and receive her inheritance, and together they will rule the cosmos, or the created order. When we love our wives like Christ loved the Church, and our wives respect us like the church respects Christ, we illustrate for our children, and for the world, a picture of the end of history. How you manage your household will have a cosmic affect. Know and understand that. You are never out of this fight whether you like it or not. Be broken over this reality or get broke. Go to war for the cosmos. Yesterday was easy!

In this seventeenth episode, Pastor Luke looks at the history of excuse making and talks about putting excuses to death. Far too many men in the Church make excuses for their failures, not because they are not capable of taking on responsibility, but because they are allergic to hard work. Responsibility involves sacrifice and selflessness and pain. Making excuses is easy and requires nothing more than creativity. It is selfish and painless. Hard work produces results, despising excuses. Great men don’t make excuses, but overcome them. Don’t be good at making excuses, but good at putting them do death. Bury the excuses. Yesterday was easy!

In this fifteenth episode, Pastor Luke discusses having integrity from two different perspectives. One, as defined by Scripture, and two as defined by his dear friend, soon to be retired Navy SEAL, Captain Brad Geary. Holistically walk in integrity. Let your wife see it. Let your children see it. Let the public see it. And most importantly, let your Creator who judges righteously see it! Have integrity. Yesterday was easy!

In this thirteenth episode, Pastor Luke looks at the courage David had to slay the giant Goliath, and discusses how Christian men can have that same courage to slay giants in their own lives. Far too many Christian men are cowards and lack the testicular fortitude to confront our enemies in the name of the Lord of Hosts. Like the men of Israel, why are we fleeing from the fight? A small Hebrew shepherd boy understood this, and so should we. Don’t run from the fight, but have courage like David!